Why I Wear the Same Clothes Everyday

Not so long ago I thought I needed certain things to make me feel good and elevate my status or elevate my endorphins. One of those things was the clothing I wore. I was caught within the consumerism of our culture of never being satisfied. So I changed.

Over the last five-ish years, Lisa and I have been purging, minimizing, and freeing ourselves of things that no longer serve us value. What the practice of minimalism has done for us is free our minds of the need to find value in things that don't matter to us or shouldn't matter to us. We seek value in the things which promote our personal growth or to help us be healthy enough to grow others in the areas we serve them.

Minimalist also helps us simplify our decisions for what we do and choose not to do. To give you an example, let me highlight the clothing I wear.

My Feet Look Like Feet

I enjoy minimalist (zero drop) shoes. The ones I'm wearing in the featured picture is Vibram Five Fingers, which is just one of the brands I wear, but I wear them pretty much every day. The other two brands I love are Vivobarefoot (more stylish day-to-day shoes) and Xero Shoes (best for all things fitness and hiking).

My go-to daily, for the past 15+ years, has been my Five Fingers. To some people, they look weird because they're in the shape of feet and toes. For that reason, I like them that much more, and, for me, they function well because they literally assume the natural shape of my feet. They're ultra-comfortable and have given my flat feet, what has been missing for decades, arches. These three 3 shoes help me save time not getting lost in decision fatigue of trying to figure out what shoe goes best with the outfit I’m wearing. Some people enjoy that, and that’s okay for them, however, it’s not for me. What I gain by eliminating a decision of what shoe to wear gives me back mental energy to be free to do many other things.

I don't care if people don't like them or if they think I'm weird. I am weird, I'm okay with that, and I’m happy wearing shoes that look like feet.

No Ring Around My Collar

My minimalism has also given me the freedom to be the simplified version of me without experiencing decision fatigue in choosing more than I need in the garments I wear. What do I mean?

Think about Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein, Mark Zuckerberg, Arianna Huffington, and others. They wear the same thing every day or some version of the same thing, with consistency.

There's also this thing called the capsule wardrobe (a practice Lisa enjoys), where people have a limited amount of clothing— whether it be 6 pieces or 60 pieces— and choose combinations from that collection to match or complement what they wear each day.

Whichever approach you take, there's a certain rhythm that helps eliminate stress, cost, time, and have more mental energy to license creative opportunities which can get zapped by the pseudo simple task of deciding on what clothes you intend to wear for the day. Why does it have to be so complicated?

Think about it... If you find clothes you like, look good in, feel good in, and are confident being in, why not wear them as frequently as you can?

This is what I have chosen to do. I found a particular V-neck t-shirt I like, look good in (although subjective), feel good in, am confident being in, and I wear this shirt every day.

Ok now before you think, “THAT’S GROSS He wears the same shirt every day!” I have 12 +/- of these V-necks, mostly all dark gray (goes with everything) and all I have to do each morning is throw it on and go.

Of course my wardrobe wouldn't be complete without the bottom half being covered, and I think many people are grateful of me doing so.

Can a Guy Wear Yoga Pants?

Jeans are comfortable. I look good in jeans. I feel good in jeans. I am confident in jeans. I wear jeans.

There's a brand I get that has a little bit of Lycra in them, which means they have some give and stretch, and that makes them even that much more comfortable. Think of it like your favorite pair of sweat pants or yoga pants and your favorite pair of jeans got married, had a baby, and that is what you get to wear every day. They look like jeans but feel as comfortable as sweat pants or yoga pants. Uh-huh yes.

I apply this same principle to the shorts I wear too, but you wouldn't catch me dead in jean shorts. It's fine, and no judgment if you wear jean shorts (Lisa does), but just not my thing.

Having more headspace, without having to think about what I wear, has gifted me time to reflect on how I am being a faithful steward of the resources which God has entrusted to me. I used to be an Amazon addict, buying things literally every day, and I knew the delivery drivers by first name. That habit was not wise and led me down a dangerous path. Luckily I was able to pull out and that's a story for another time. I promise I'll share it one day.

My Final Thought

Remember this whole thing— minimalism— is a process and all processes take time, ebb & flow, may be reevaluated along the way, look different for everyone, and have a starting point.

❓Have you gone down the minimalism path?
❓Is this a journey you've entertained or considered?
❓If you have, what tips can you share that you've discovered?
❓If you haven't yet, what's stopping you?
Let us know in the comments.

“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” Colossians 3:1

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